The Winner's Right
by Aubraeous
Summary: Kazuya Vs. Lei, both competing for the right to advance in the King of the Iron Fist Tournament.


_**A/N:**_ The "winner's right" refers to the right of the winner to advance once they've won a fight. This has been edited to no end, and thank you so much _**Salysha**_ for the wonderful critique! Hopefully, I managed to correct those problems. The scene is from Tekken 5, the "Dragon's Nest" stage, because it happens to be my all time favorite Tekken stage.

_**Disclaimer:**_ I don't own Tekken or any of its characters; it is the property of Namco-Bandai. I'm not profiting from this, unless you count the satisfaction I get from writing it!

--

Thunder growled in the distance, and heat lightening flashing in bright, jagged arcs across the darkening sky, the heavens threatening rain on all those down below. Other than the crashes of thunder, there were no other noises; not even the sound of wind whistling through the rough outcroppings of the mountain. The fighting ring had been placed impossibly high on the summit of the mountain, surrounded by craggy ridges and clouds. The bridge and path leading to it was in complete disrepair, looking ready to fall apart at the slightest pressure; they looked unstable at the very best. No cries of birds could be heard, no chattering of bugs; it was an inhospitable place, where the air was thin, the cold oppressive, and devoid of all life. Curled around protectively was an immense stone dragon, its claws digging into the boundaries of the ring, and carved out of the flesh of the mountain itself. It's perpetual snarl and venomous eyes turned to the center of the ring, where the only two living creatures on the desolate peak, drawn to the place because of the chance to advance, fought for the "winner's right".

--

With a scowl, he leapt back, planting his feet firmly on the cold stone ground, and deftly blocked a high kick aimed at the side of his head with the bony part of his forearm before countering with a quick uppercut to his opponents jaw, knocking him backwards and causing Lei's teeth to click together painfully. The battle had continued like this for many minutes, and both fighters were tiring, their moves growing increasingly desperate with the desire to win. It was only both of their iron wills that kept them going this long, and Lei wiped a bead of sweat from his brow to keep it from trailing down into his eye, his breathing harsh and labored.

"You're skills are lacking, Lei," Kazuya taunted, falling back into his fighting stance with fluid grace. The cop regained his balance quickly, as was expected from a fighter of his caliber, and moved into his own strange stance as well, his shoulders hunched like a boxer.

"You are as strong as ever," he replied quietly, feigning a high attack at the Mishima's chest before performing a hasty kick at his unprotected knee. Not expecting the move, the half-devil stumbled as his knee threatened to give out, leaving him open to the powerful punches of Lei's five form kung fu. It felt as if several fists, instead of just two, were assaulting him, and the best Kazuya could do was block the worst ones from connecting. He stumbled backward, braced his left foot against the ground, gritting his teeth at the heavy blows, and promptly swept Lei's feet out from under him, the long-haired man crashing bodily to the ground with a solid thud. With the breath knocked out of him, Lei struggled to get up, but was pinned down roughly by his rival's brace-clad foot, and Wulong gasped for air.

"Stay down," the half-devil grated out, pressing down harder when the cop struggled even more against his otherworldly strength, grasping the foot planted squarely on his chest in an attempt to wrench it off. Though killing no longer bothered him, he felt that the he had fought honorably and well, thus deserving to be spared; who knew how strong the man could get in the future, and no one would ever know if he died then. Who was he to destroy such potential? But when Lei continued to struggle, Kazuya scowled and dealt a swift kick to the side of Wulong's head with his bony heel, immediately knocking him unconscious. He couldn't have him following him or attacking him later on, after all.

Hauling the surprisingly heavy man to the side of the ring, Kazuya propped him against the stone surrounding their battle ground, before standing and walking towards his next match. When he felt something tickle down the left side his face, he roughly wiped the blood from the deep cut on his cheek with the back of his arm, courtesy of one of Lei's well-aimed signature high kicks, and grimaced at yet another scar added to the many he already possessed. None of this fazed the half-devil whatsoever, and with a smirk that belied little emotion other than evil, he ran his hand through his hair to push the stray locks back into its normal upswept style.

"One more down."


End file.
